(JNS) Israeli troops foiled an imminent Palestinian attack on Sunday, August 6, killing three members of a terrorist cell near the northern Shomron city of Jenin.

Video footage shared by the Kan News public broadcaster showed IDF soldiers opening fire at a vehicle adjacent to the town of Arrabeh, southwest of Jenin.

Following the firefight, IDF soldiers found an assault rifle in the vehicle. The bodies of the three terrorists are being held by Israeli authorities.

According to authorities, the head of the cell was Naif Abu Suias, 26, a resident of Jenin’s refugee camp. Abu Suias was a “prominent military operative … who was involved in military activity against our forces and in advancing military activity directed by terror elements from the Gaza Strip,” the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) said.

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said that Abu Suias’s cell had planned to carry out a drive-by shooting against Israeli civilians in Shomron, similar to the one that killed Meir Tamari on May 31.

The terrorist cell had been involved in previous attacks, added Hagari.